Extinction Rates

Edited by John H. Lawton and Robert M. May

Extinction Rates

Edited by John H. Lawton and Robert M. May

Description

As the need increases for sound estimates of impending rates of animal and plant species extinction, scientists must have a firm grounding in the qualitative and quantitative methods required to make the best possible predictions. Extinction Rates offers the most wide-ranging and practical introduction to those methods available. With contributions from an international cast of leading experts, the book combines cutting-edge information on recent and past extinction rates with treatments of underlying ecological and evolutionary causes. Throughout, it highlights apparent differences in extinction rates among taxonomic groups and places, aiming to identify unresolved issues and important questions. Written with advanced undergraduate and graduate students in mind,
Extinction Rates will also prove invaluable to researchers in ecology, conservation biology, and the earth and environmental sciences.

Extinction Rates

Edited by John H. Lawton and Robert M. May

Table of Contents

Preface1. Assessing Extinction Rates2. Extinctions in the Fossil Record3. Constancy and Change of Life in the Sea4. Insect Faunas in Ice Age Environments: Why So Little Extinction?5. Bird Extinctions in the Central Pacific6. Extinctions in Mediterranean Areas7. Recent Past and Future Extinctions in Birds8. Rates and Patterns of Extinction Among British Invertebrates9. Assessing the Risk of Plant Extinction Due to Pollinator and Disperser Failure10. Population Dynamic Principles11. Estimating Extinction from Molecular Phylogenies12. Biological Models for Monitoring Species Decline: The Construction and Use of Databases13. Classification of Species and Its Role in Conservation Planning14. The
Scale of the Human Enterprise and Biodiversity LossAuthor IndexSubject Index

Extinction Rates

Edited by John H. Lawton and Robert M. May

Reviews and Awards

"This timely work derives from a 1993 conference that focused on the estimation of extinction rates. The papers are data-driven contributions that focus on all aspects of ongoing extinction rates without ignoring the fossil record. . . .Excellent chapters on how to assess extinction rates, the role of pollinator and disperser failure in plant extinctions, and extinction-rate estimation from molecular phylogenies add much-needed methodological background to the outer chapters. In general, the book is oriented towards a conservation-conscious audience, and it does its job well." --Choice